


Take the Tumble

by lazylyz



Series: fair game oneshots [8]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Timeline, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Feelings Realization, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Swearing, ch 12 and 13 didn't happen, weapon angst with no character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-29
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:00:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24443971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lazylyz/pseuds/lazylyz
Summary: The Ace Ops are called in to deal with a herd of manticore on a clifftop near where Amity is supposed to launch. Qrow goes with them. During the fight, Clover is forced to save himself at the expense of someone who’s trusted him.
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Series: fair game oneshots [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1772341
Comments: 12
Kudos: 67





	Take the Tumble

**Author's Note:**

> I was totally going to post the next chapter of inclinations, but this came to me at 3 am last night and I couldn’t let it go. I’m kind of headcanoning this as if Salem wasn’t coming to Atlas. The group would still be focused on finishing the amity project, and as such, Qrow and Clover probably would have gotten closer.  
> Also, I got this idea from this Grog and Pike scene from Critical Role Campaign 1. https://youtu.be/PfvVssT83MU?t=15132  
> I can say, I proceeded to watch the last hour of that Sphinx fight again. You don’t have to watch it to know what’s going on here.  
> This has not been beta read and I wrote it today so I didn't really edit it. You get grammerly's basic alerts.

“There’s a herd of manticores and potentially a sphinx that has taken up residence on a clifftop near where Amity is set to launch from. We’re being dispatched as the other teams already have their assignments for the day,” Clover announced to his team. Qrow stood nearby, arms and ankles crossed as he leaned against the wall, listening to Clover’s statement. “Qrow, you’re welcome to join us. I hear you’ve tackled Grimm like this before.”

“Uh, yeah,” he replied, pushing off the wall and joining the group.

“Excellent!” Elm said, slapping Qrow on the shoulder as he stepped close. “It’s always fun to watch you in action.”

He rolled his eyes but gave Clover a small smirk when the others weren’t looking.

“All right team, let’s head out.”

The skies were clear during their flight over, but something deep within had Clover on edge. As they approached the drop zone several large manticores started to stream out of a nearby cave and a dull roar could be heard coming from inside.

“That’s a sphinx!” Qrow shouted over the wiping winds. “Be on your guard. Its tail has a mind of its own.”

They dropped in from well above the clearing. The airship not sticking around with flying Grimm so close.

Clover took up the rear, supporting and directing the melee range fighters. Qrow circled around, driving back a manticore that slipped passed Elm and Vine’s defense. Shaking the ground beneath their feet and piercing their ears, the roar came from the cave again.

The sphinx unfurled its wings and took a running leap over the manticores and Ace Ops. It bounded past the smaller manticores as if assessing the field, before turning its attention to where Clover was fighting.

Clover glanced around, cataloging who was nearby before turning his attention to the sphinx. It was several times larger than the manticores and had a clear intelligence about it. Especially how it picked its way across the field of hunters.

Clover readied Kingfisher as the sphinx landed in front of him with one large bound. Its tail whipped around, striking for Clover’s side. He rolled away, hooking Kingfisher around the appendage to pull him the rest of the way around, but with a flick, Clover wasn’t expecting, the sphinx launched Clover towards the cliff edge.

He glanced over his shoulder at the sheer drop and felt his heartrate skyrocket. The sphinx lunged again, and this time Clover had nowhere to go. Taking the brunt of the attack, Clover was flung backward over the edge.

No one could hear his cry for help as his voice fell against the buffeting winds. The air sucked out of his lungs. In desperation, Clover flicked his pin, channeling his semblance, and cast Kingfisher. The line sailed back over the cliff edge and out of sight before suddenly becoming taut, halting his fall. Thanking his luck, Clover braced his feet against the cliff face and started to reel himself back up.

Clover neared the top as roars of the manticores faded, most likely dealt with by the rest of his team. He pulled himself even with the cliff edge, hand splayed ready to push himself back on flat ground. He couldn’t believe his luck that Kingfisher had found something to attach itself to and hoped it was the sphinx.

As he dragged himself back over the edge, his eyes followed Kingfisher’s line to find what it fastened to, and to his horror, he found Qrow, clutching the line with a bleeding hand, aura flickering. The hook deeply embedded in his side. He watched on as Qrow steadied himself with one hand on Harbinger’s hilt, the blade having been stabbed into the ground. 

“I’ve got you, Cloves,” Qrow ground out, teeth gritted in pain. Behind him the sphinx charged, its teeth barred snarl echoing off the jagged rock wall behind them. The shock held Clover’s body captive. He couldn’t move if he had wanted to.

“Captain, get up!” Harriet shouted, using her fists to knock the charging Grimm aside.

Vine made quick work of the redirected sphinx, using his semblance to trip it up even more. Marrow flipped past, slinging Fetch towards the falling creature. The blade tore through its exposed neck with ease, returning to Marrow in a shower of dust as the sphinx dissipated. The Ace Ops swiftly secured the rest of the area as Clover got up and made his way to Qrow as fast as he could.

With Kingfisher’s line now slack, Qrow fell to one knee but gave Clover a sly smirk.

“Fuckin’ lucky I was there,” he said, pulling the hook out of his side. “There was nothing else for Kingfisher to grab hold of. You would have been gone. Don’t-” He gasped, clutching at wound. “Don’t…”

“Qrow!” Clover fell to his knees beside the man. His hands trembled as he helped cover the wound. Clover could feel the panic bubbling up the back of his throat. “Damnit. Qrow hang in there. Don’t move.”

Qrow’s skin was already paler than normal. How could this have happened? He tried to think, but the chaos of the moment clouded his thoughts.

“Harriet call in the evac,” Elm’s voice cut through his haze. “Qrow needs medical attention immediately. Vine scout the rest of the clifftop. We need to make sure we got all the Grimm. Take Marrow with you.” She turned to Clover. “Captain get your emergency kit out. His aura shattered. We need to make sure his temperature doesn’t drop anymore.”

He fumbled with the cloth container; hands stiff from pulling himself up the cliffside. Elm reached over, stilling his motions before deftly unfurling the space blanket. She shook it open and flung it around both Qrow and Clover.

“Evac’s on its way,” Harriet said, standing next to Elm. She nodded in reply.

The winds buffeted around them as the Manta approached. Harriet and Elm assisted Clover in getting Qrow into the airship while Vine and Marrow did one last sweep of the area. The spattered blood in the snow the only trace of the fight and subsequent tumble that could have marked the end for Clover.

He clutched at Qrow’s shoulder as he watched the spot disappear from sight as the Manta carried them back to the safety of Atlas. The rest of the flight back a blur and, before Clover knew it, the Manta was landing. Harriet chattered into her comms, ordering medical assistance to their hanger. She nodded to Clover, placing a firm hand on his shoulder. He pulled tighter at the metal blanket, making sure it was secure around them.

“He’s going to be okay, Clover. They’ll patch him up real quick, especially with Jaune around.”

When the ramp lowered, a gurney was waiting for them as well as a small medical team. They pushed Clover aside and quickly started assessing Qrow’s condition. Once he was secured, they wheeled him out of the Manta and towards the medical wing.

“I’ll take him to the med-bay, Clover. You need to go give the General a debrief,” Elm said, holding her arm out so he couldn’t follow Qrow.

“Right, debrief,” he said to himself, the words feeling hollow in his mouth. His feet took him to the General’s office on their own accord, his thoughts remaining behind with Qrow and the gurney they had placed him on.

“Clover!”

The call of his name jostled him out of his mulling. He must be at the General’s office. Ironwood stood before him; hand outstretched as if to get his attention.

“Sorry, sir. I, uh, the debrief. We cleared out the manticores and sphinx that had taken over the clifftop. It should be safe for workers to return.”

“Thank you, Captain. Are you all right? You seem out of it.”

“I got knocked off the cliff. It was a close call, but uh, Qrow saved me. He’s in the med-bay. His aura shattered and he sustained several deep lacerations.”

The General searched his eyes and then nodded. “Well, the mission has been completed and there are no more pressing assignments for the day. I can tell you’re concerned. Qrow is more resilient than that but go and check up on him if it’ll put your mind at ease.”

Clover nodded and saluted before turning to leave. He quickly made his way through the halls towards the medical wing.

“Captain!” Elm shouted, striding down the hall toward him. “Your little bird checked himself out. He’s probably headed back to his quarters.”

“Elm,” he tersely replied.

“What? We all saw, Clover. It’s nothing to be ashamed about,” she said, ignoring his discomfort. “He asked about you.”

That caught his attention.

“He probably needs the reassurance as much as you do. I’ll take care of any tasks you have left for the day.”

“Uh, the General gave me the rest of the day,” he said, clearing his throat.

A bright smile spread across her face, “Got it! I’ll let you go then.” And, just a quick she left.

Clover watched her retreating form before leaving himself, this time taking the route to the huntsman quarters. Qrow must have left just before Elm because Clover caught up to him in the hall before he knew it.

“Qrow,” Clover called out.

“Hey, lucky charm.” Qrow stopped and faced him, eyes tracking over and assessing what Clover didn’t know. “Clean bill of health. Doc said to take the night off and no heavy fights tomorrow. You okay?”

“Yeah,” Clover breathlessly replied. “Is Jaune-“

“He’s going to stop by later to see if my aura needs help.” Qrow paused, eyes narrowing at him. “You still keyed up?”

Clover found he couldn’t deflect the assessment and nodded.

“You're going to crash hard when it passes. Here, come with me,” Qrow said, grabbing his hand.

He led him down several halls before stopping at an indiscriminate door. Qrow scanned his scroll and the door opened into a quiet apartment. The kids had all been housed in the dorms, but since Qrow was a licensed huntsman, he had been given the transient housing. Qrow led him to the small kitchen and pulled out several small jars.

“It’s peppermint, an herbal tea, so no caffeine to give you jitters,” Qrow said, holding up a jar of loose leaves. “I find it helps with the nerves.”

Clover nodded his acquiescence since he didn’t know much about teas. He could still feel the buzz under his skin like a live wire with no ground and didn’t know why the feeling wouldn’t go away. They were here, safe inside, not out on the tundra with a broken aura or falling off a cliff with no way back up.

Yet still, Clover’s thoughts bounced and darted around, seeking an anchor point. Qrow had his back to him as he poured the hot water over the leaves, so Clover let himself observe without restraint. His thoughts narrowed to Qrow’s practiced ease and the sure motions as he went about making tea for them.

Once he was done, Qrow put the pot down and faced him. He held Clover’s gaze without question, self-assured, and steady. Clover could pinpoint the moment he realized why the situation bothered him so much. It wasn’t just the possibility of falling off that cliff and being stranded.

No, he had hurt Qrow in the process.

“I need you to know you've come to mean more to me in just these past few months than I thought possible. I just-" Clover stopped short. They hadn’t really talked about this, this thing between them. What had started as flirting and friendly overtures turned into something that made Clover scared to put a name to, at least not without talking to Qrow. “I don’t want to be a reason that brings you pain.”

Clover found he couldn’t continue, words stalling on the tip of his tongue. Qrow pushed away from the counter and stepped into Clover’s space. A warmth radiated between them, and Clover felt some of the tension leave his body.

“Clover, I would take that hit a thousand times if it would mean you were okay.”

“Qrow, that’s not- “

“You know, someone’s been teaching me between what’s my fault and what’s out of my control, and you shouldn’t be responsible for everything that happens good or bad. You could call it my bad luck or your good luck that I caught Kingfisher’s line the way I did. If I hadn’t, you would have been down that cliff with no aura on your own, probably outside the range of our comms.”

It was the same situation he ran through his mind during the Manta ride back, but he couldn’t let it go. Clover could still feel a line tension course though him as Qrow’s eyes flitted across his face.

“Now, I’m probably going to do something stupid, if that’s okay with you?” Qrow asked, reaching up and brushing his fingers along the edge of Clover’s jaw.

“Yeah.”

Qrow leaned in, hand gently cupping the back of his head. His other arm wrapped around Clover’s waist, a securing weight to the thoughts that kept floating through his mind. Clover wrapped his arms around Qrow, returning the embrace.

The feather-light kiss left Clover breathless, and when Qrow pulled away, Clover felt all the fight and tension leave him. They stood there for a moment, enjoying the moment.

“That wasn’t stupid,” Clover said, finally finding his voice.

“Hm, it could have been.”

“I don’t think that’s possible.”

“The leaves are probably done steeping,” Qrow said, ignoring the look Clover was giving him. He slid out of Clover’s embrace and went back to the counter where their cups were set out. “How do you want your tea?”

“How you have it is fine,” Clover said, watching Qrow overturn the bottle of honey, squeezing a large dollop into his cup. Clover snorted.

“What?” Qrow asked.

“I shouldn’t be surprised.”

“You don’t measure this; you estimate that shit with your soul.”

Clover laughed, stepping up behind him. He encircled his arms around Qrow and dropped his head to his shoulder. “Is this okay?”

“Yeah,” Qrow replied, shifting to give him a cup of tea. “It’s okay.”

**Author's Note:**

> Peppermint tea is where it’s at.  
> Also, you can find me on tumblr @lazylyz or @lyzwrites.


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